Examples of towing hitch assemblies are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,044,651; 5,707,070; 5,772,229; 5,839,745; 6,247,720; 6,357,777; 6,386,570; 6,557,883; 6,682,089 and 6,685,210; U.S. Design Pat. Nos. USD380719 and USD395025; and Canadian Patent Application No. CA2576427. The disclosures of these and all other publications referenced herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.
Sliding hitch assemblies may include a fifth wheel that is longitudinally movable relative to the towing vehicle. Such longitudinal movement of the fifth wheel assembly allows the fifth wheel, and correspondingly a trailer kingpin received by the fifth wheel, to be suitably positioned relative to the towing vehicle. For example, the fifth wheel may be located above the towing vehicle's rear axle for normal towing. However, the fifth wheel may be selectively displaced toward the rear end of the towing vehicle to allow for increased clearance between the towing vehicle and trailer, which offers greater maneuverability such that the towing vehicle and trailer may perform a tighter turn due to the increased clearance.